Eastern Bank Buys 1,408 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Eastern Bank lifted its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 62,559 shares of the information services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,408 shares during the quarter. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $22,104,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,508 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,094,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC grew its stake in Alphabet by 0.6% in the first quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 4,844 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,390,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. Ring Mountain Capital LLC lifted its position in Alphabet by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Ring Mountain Capital LLC now owns 3,554 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,174,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. now owns 1,589 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $499,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Enhancement Group LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Financial Enhancement Group LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $380,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $372.47 on Tuesday. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.92 and a twelve month high of $404.47. The company has a market capitalization of $4.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 18.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $355.68 and a 200 day moving average of $338.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.64, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $6.24. The business had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The company’s revenue was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.31 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.42%.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong earnings and AI spending outlook: Alphabet’s latest results showed revenue growth of 24.2% year over year and substantially exceeded analyst expectations. Reports highlighted Google Cloud revenue rising 82% to $24.8 billion, a 35.6% operating margin and a record $514 billion backlog, supporting the argument that AI infrastructure spending is translating into demand. Alphabet’s AI Spending Finally Makes Sense
• Positive Sentiment: Growing confidence in AI leadership: Google DeepMind commentary suggested the industry may be entering a new stage of AI development, while broader hyperscaler earnings renewed investor appetite for AI-related stocks, including Alphabet. Analysts and growth-stock commentary remain broadly constructive, with multiple buy or overweight ratings and a reported median price target above current trading levels. Google DeepMind Says the Next Stage of AI May Already Be Starting
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo provides an additional growth narrative: An analysis cited by media reports found Waymo robotaxis crashed 68% less often than human drivers. Improved safety could support the long-term commercial expansion and valuation of Alphabet’s autonomous-driving business. Waymo robotaxis found to crash 68% less often than human drivers
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional support: Massachusetts Financial Services reportedly increased its Alphabet position by approximately 23%, adding more than five million shares. That purchase reinforced the perception that professional investors view Alphabet’s AI and cloud prospects favorably. Massachusetts Financial Services fund update
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory discussions ahead: Google representatives are expected to meet with the White House, Anthropic and OpenAI to discuss a proposed AI oversight framework. The meeting could provide clarity but also highlights potential future compliance costs and restrictions. AI giants to meet with White House
• Negative Sentiment: Cloud competition remains a risk: Microsoft continues to lead Alphabet in cloud market share, potentially limiting Google Cloud’s ability to convert its strong backlog into sustained market-share gains. Microsoft Races Ahead of Google in the Cloud
• Negative Sentiment: AI product-control concerns: Google reportedly rolled back an AI feature in Google Earth after users generated fake satellite imagery, raising questions about product safeguards, reputational risk and the pace of AI deployment. For a Day, Google Made It Easy to Spoof Satellite Imagery

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GOOG shares. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $425.00 price objective (up from $405.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Alphabet from $460.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. DA Davidson cut their price target on Alphabet from $375.00 to $350.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. DZ Bank raised Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Phillip Securities upgraded Alphabet from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $410.09.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.39, for a total value of $27,337.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,305,738.46. The trade was a 0.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 118,138 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total transaction of $2,232,808.20. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 600,547 shares of company stock valued at $16,255,540 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) is a multinational technology holding company headquartered in Mountain View, California. Formed in 2015 through a corporate restructuring of Google, Alphabet serves as the parent to Google LLC and a portfolio of businesses collectively known as “Other Bets.” Google was originally founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin; Alphabet is led by CEO Sundar Pichai, who oversees Google and the broader company while the founders remain prominent shareholders and influential figures in the company’s history.

Alphabet’s core business centers on internet search and advertising, with Google Search and the company’s ad platforms (including Google Ads and AdSense) generating the majority of revenue by connecting advertisers with consumers worldwide.